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Methodology

Survey operations

Survey production involves five distinct processes: survey design, sample enumeration, diary collection and editing, and the processing of the information into final publishable data, all of which are managed by the Survey Operations division.

Survey design

The Survey Design department defines the geography used for measuring and reporting BBM Radio audiences using a combination of data from Canada Post and Statistics Canada, as well as the boundaries of the markets participating in the survey. The geography is then mapped across the markets for each survey, approximately 110 markets.

The Survey Design department also maintains the records of all BBM populations, and ensures their accuracy for later projecting (or weighting) the diary tuning back to the whole population of people in each area and cell. This helps to ensure that the survey population accurately represents the general population in each demographic, in each market.

Sample design

Using historic response rates and household size data, survey design staff determine the number of respondents, diary mail-outs and telephone listings needed to conduct each survey. Various suppliers provide computerized telephone listings, which come from the latest available phone directories and cover most of Canada . If telephone listings for rural areas are not covered by our supplier’s lists, BBM tops-up the list with telephone directories, chosen manually by BBM staff. Once all the listing data has been computer-entered, it is postal-coded and assigned a geographic cell number.

Enumeration

Using CATI (Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing) technology, the Enumeration departments in Montreal and Moncton recruit households to participate in each upcoming BBM survey.

Suppliers provide a list of households and a sample is taken. Each household is contacted via a phone call and an adult contact name is created. From one responsible adult, enumerators collect the name, gender and age of every person in the dwelling, their preferred language of correspondence and the correct mailing address. The age required is from 12 years of age and older.

All respondent information is kept strictly confidential.

Diary mailing

Respondents may request their diaries in either English or French. Diary packages (introductory letter, diary, incentive and return envelope) are assembled by a direct-mail company and delivered to the sorting plant for mailing.

Selected cooperating households receive a one-week diary for each household member along with a small cash token one week prior to the designated survey week. BBM also contacts each household by phone just prior to and during the designated survey week to confirm that the diary has been received, and to encourage participation and the prompt return of the completed diaries at the week’s end. A reminder notice is also sent by mail. BBM also does a follow-up phone call at the end of each survey week to remind respondents to send back the diary.

The survey

During the specified one-week period, each diary keeper records his or her Radio listening by quarter hour from 5:00 a.m. until 1:00 a.m. for seven days.

Diary collection, checking and processing

Diaries are sorted and deemed to be early, good or late returns based on the relationship between the day on which they arrive at BBM and the survey week that they covered. To facilitate the editing process, internal post office staff sort the diaries by cell and forward them to the Editing staff.

Edit staff proof each diary to ensure that it has been properly completed. Specifically, they check that the required demographic questions have been answered and that the quarter-hour entries will allow us to identify the station to which the respondent was tuned.

Occasionally, respondents have trouble identifying the stations to which they tuned. Sometimes, the quarter-hour entries contain fractured or invalid call letters, channel numbers, program names or network IDs. Senior diary processing staff use their broad knowledge base in this area to decipher and fix almost all station ID problems. These staff also routinely spots diaries that are missing key pieces of data (age, sex, language, call letters), without which these diaries would have to be excluded from the sample base. To salvage these diaries, we telephone the respondents and question them about the missing or conflicting data.

The information we collect from all of the returned diaries is keyed into our computers. Next, respondent and keying errors are highlighted and fixed via numerous computerized "discrepancy" checks and reports. Computer control files are used to define BBM geography and list the stations available in Canada. Additional files track things such as time zones. BBM maintains meticulous controls to ensure that all diary entries are explicit before being stored on our computer system to await final processing.

Finally, the Survey Controls Coordinator gathers and inputs any additional data required to process each survey. Information from returned diaries is entered into our computers, subjected to a series of comprehensive edits and quality checks, projected and processed.